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The Ultimate Laser Buyer's Guide: Handhelds & Pointers

The Ultimate Laser Buyers' Guide: Handhelds &Pointers

Preface
So I have decided with the numerous weekly posts concerning which handheld/pointer to buy, that I would make a thread with strictly this information. If you happen to see a picture that is yours, forgive me for stealing it; it was used b/c you either take awesome pictures, or it was the best quality I could find.

When posting questions about your next, or first laser purchase, think about what you are asking. A word of advice for new users: A LASER'S POWER IS NOT MEASURED BY HOW FAST IT CAN POP BALLOONS, LIGHT MATCHES, CUT HOLES IN TRASH BAGS, OR BURN THINGS!!!

All too often users post the same question that was posted the same day before, just worded differently regarding their new purchase and whether or not it will be able to perform these tasks. There are simply too many factors that go into a laser's output that specifies what it can and cannot do. If you are spending $500-$2000 to light matches and pop rubber balloons, not only do you have too much time and money on your hands, but perhaps you have taken up the wrong hobby.... But, we will leave that conversation for "The Cafe"... Let me repeat myself for those of you who like to ruin threads... *ehem*... WE WILL LEAVE THAT CONVERSATION FOR THE CAFE.

When purchasing your first laser, there are a lot of things you need to ask yourself:

How much am I willing to spend on this?

How much will I actually use the thing?

How much power do I REALLY NEED?

Will I use this responsibly?

What are the laws in my area for this awesome new hobby of mine?

You really need to answer all of the above honestly. If you can't be honest with yourself on these questions, you are going to make an impulse purchase, and potentially harm others if you are not ready to get into something like the world of high powered lasers. One thing you should do as a rule of thumb before buying a laser, or travelling with your laser is check the local laws AND ABIDE BY THEM!

So, let's get on with the post and get to the good stuff!

Here goes:

Handhelds (green)

PGLIII

I start w/ this simply b/c it was the 1st popular handheld here in the forums. It was known to have driverboard/unstability issues, but I have heard this has been well taken care of w/ the newer models. It can be found under many names, but they are all about the same thing:

This laser is just plain cool (as is Laserglow's customer service). It has the features of a tabletop module, with the (somewhat) portability of a handheld. It's about the size of a 3D Maglite: a bit bigger than the others I've gone over. This laser was designed more for scientific and industrial applications, but can be used for consumer purposes as well. Only a few people on the forums have this laser b/c of it's high price... this laser has a lot to offer though:

Probably one of the best bang for the buck modules around (in terms of mW per dollar). These are made by CNI, the makers of the PGLIII (well duh!). The best way to obtain one of these is through Lucent Optics, started by one of our own here at CPF.

These are sold by a fellow forum member, "bootleg2go" (JacK). He is a great guy to deal with, as many people here will attest to. You could say he is the Arnold Beland (owner of Atlasnova, which I will get to) of the handheld world. These lasers are known to be nice and stable for long periods of time, and have some great outputs for the money.

This laser looks about the same as the PPL, except it is powered with an included rechargable type 18650 lithium battery. This eliminates the need for buying any Duracells, Energizers, etc. (it will save you a load of $$$ in the long run!). This laser is different from the PPL technically speaking too:

The Spyder has had many improvements with stability issues according to many members, and hopefully with the excess IR as well (which causes them to be so powerful). The Spyder II is due any day now, which many users are looking forward to. Though the specs have yet to be publicly released, it seems that this new model will have many improvements over it's 1st gen brother.

This is CNI's blue (473nm) laser pointer. It's more the size of a handheld module, which is why it's being included in this section. Very few people have this laser. In fact, "The LED Museum" is the only user I have seen to have purchased one. His review says it all.

*update: this unit has been completely redesigned due to stability and output issues. The new casing is no longer silver, but a smaller, glossy blue one. The new version of this unit is now powered by 1 "CR-2" battery

This unit looks EXACTLY the same as the other Spyder units, except it outputs @ 473nm. I haven't heard much about this unit at all, as it it pretttty pricey. It is available through other retailers, but they simply purchased in bulk from Wicked.

I group this new laser w/ the modules, simply because of its form factor. While it seems to be the smallest blue pointer yet, it doesn't quite fit the pointer profile. Call it what you want; it still functions the same regardless. It uses the infamous new Sony blu-ray diode, outputting a raw 20mW.

I have yet to test this device, or hear of anyone's experiences with it, but I can imagine when used properly it would be a great tool for experiments. This device should NEVER be used for play (popping balloons, lighting matches, etc). This device looks and functions the same as the PGLIII, so no image is necessary (you cant see the beam anyway).

First up, is probably the most popular, and widely known greenie to date: the Leadlight. This pointer comes in 2 versions: the 105, and the 110. The 105, the original, is the highly moddable, more popular one. This unit has been known to exceed ouputs of 50mW and beyond. Some more experienced modders have gotten similar results with the 110. The 110 has the "APC" function... a part of the driverboard is dedicated to regulating output and stabilization of the laser. This APC function is the reason that the 110 is harder to modify for higher outputs.

Atlasnova is the only destributor in the world who supplies ALL black leadlights. Also, his leadlights can be purchased at higher outputs (>60mW for example). After close examination of these pointers, some have said that larger diodes and crystal assemblies are used (in the 105 version). Arnold and Alvine Beland, owner and wife, are absolutely WONDERFUL to work with. Arnold makes the sale decisions for minors, as well as for high spec units over the telephone; Alvine handles the sales end. Enough cannot be said about Atlasnova.

These come in several different outputs, ranging from 15mW all the way up to a whopping 125mW - quite an achievement for a pointer. Keep in mind that duty cycles are a must when dealing with the higher powered pointers, as the diode can easily overheat in such a small environment. These lasers are currently manufactured by CNI, but Wicked has announced that they will soon be producing them on their own, and a whole host of new features are due to come with the new model. You can read more about this new version here.

Atlasnova also offers red pointers, available in the 650 and 635nm wavelengths. The casings look about the same physically. The 635nm version is the brighter of the two, and is one of the brightest red pointers on the market; it should NOT be used for lecturing, as it is much too bright. The 650nm is a more suitable pointer for lecturing and playing with pets; both are of the highest quality though.

This is the new 650nm pointer from Wicked lasers. it is available in 100 and 150mW versions. It appears very bright because of its high output. I don't have much information on these, but by visiting the pulsar forum you can gather more information if needed.

Features/specs:

NOT FDA compliant (b/c of higher output)

powered by 2 "AAA" batteries

outputs are sold in <150mW

I really hope this helps some of you; I will do my best to keep it updated as new products come about.

Re: The Ultimate Laser Buyer's Guide: Handhelds & Pointers

Nice review Superbert. Good to see the lasers all grouped up like that.

I would suggest that whilst you described the lasers supplied by WL as "NOT fully FDA legal", the correct term to use would be:
"Not FDA compliant" or "Not FDA approved". But it's your review/comparison... I just though some of the points below might be worth mentioning.

This is because the FDA only influences US imports & distribution and have not currently declared the lasers as illegal.... just "not compliant with FDA standards". Furthermore, the FDA told me last year (in a letter posted in these forums) that ANY laser in the Class 3B portable variety is "illegal" to use if the user/operator does not have a Variance authorising them to operate it. So, FDA compliant or not, all these lasers are equally restricted when it comes to authorised use.

Since a lot of attention & devotion to this subject has been mentioned in the Forums in the past, and the first point in your list of each item relates to the proposed legality of the item, then I'd venture to guess that it's worth mentioning that the FDA only relates to US users/purchasers/owners.

Your mentioning of Leadlights being 'legal' (and subsequent disclosure in your lists of being able to easily modify these lasers to excessive outputs) neglects to mention that Modding the aforementioned lasers is indeed going to make them "overpowered" by definition of the FDA laser mandate charter itself - and therefore "Illegal" under your own terms of description.
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The Red Pulsar laser at the bottom of the list doesn't require a heatsink. It can just go on and on until the batteries give out. I'd be tempted to add the words "Heatsink not required" to this particular laser. It's fun to work with for this reason... had it out last night.
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Having handled Prototypes of the Spyders in the past (I was asked to photograph them - as per your posted pics above) before returning them to the manufacturer, I note that you didn't mention that they were 'shock resistant' - also, they do not currently require a heatsink due to the design and materials used. Other models by other manufacturers seem to require heatsinks... and fans too.

I haven't used the PGL III models myself due to their weight and size (and the safety features get in the way of my work)... but does anyone have a comparison pic of these lasers together to give any understanding of the various sizes?

Re: The Ultimate Laser Buyer's Guide: Handhelds & Pointers

Good call on the vocabulary mix-up... this was sort of thrown together, just for the heck of it. While some of the lasers may not require heatsinks or extra cooling, it is a nice added feature; some may need to use the laser for long periods of time, and extra heat dissipation may be a concern to them. W/o getting off topic (like these usually do, PLEASE, NO ONE, let it go there) the "no heatsink" is a typo on the pulsar... sorry for the confusion. When I made this I copied parts of the specs and code from other areas and models within this post to speed things up... I just missed it. I truly meant to put something under the leadlight area about modifications voiding warranty as well as FDA regulations... Guess I was trying to do this while doing too many other things. I also just noticed that I forgot to add the pointers that Wicked carries... they will be added soon.

Thanks for the replies and tips. Just trying to help the laser newbies out here, just as much as everyone else!

Re: The Ultimate Laser Buyer's Guide: Handhelds & Pointers

Excellent summary! thanks for taking the time to do this!
Maybe you could include a link to the modification thread for the 105, 110, and GPL-3A with each laser (any others)? This will help people find the information and hopefully answer questions before they are asked.

Re: The Ultimate Laser Buyer's Guide: Handhelds & Pointers

Very nice job

Could you please add some info on the CNI pointers that wickedlasers distributes? Also, wickedlasers is starting to manufacture their own green pointers so they will be fully independent from CNI. When we learn more about those maybee you could add some info on them. I hear the divergence is at least twice as good on the previous pointers. Here is a photo from Marco Nero (he's the only one that has one so far). The new greenie is between a pulsar and a CNI pointer:

Re: The Ultimate Laser Buyer's Guide: Handhelds & Pointers

In keeping with the "Buyer's Guide" theme, does anyone, including manufacturers/dealers have any data on duty cycles and failure rates that can be compiled here? I am planning on purchasimg a handheld laser in the near future and reliability, not power, is my main concern. Who's got the most "bombproof" laser, at any power level? Are there any handhelds (not pointers) that are capable of truly continuous operation?

Re: The Ultimate Laser Buyer's Guide: Handhelds & Pointers

Some posts in this thread - old ones and a recent one - have disappeared. They have been deleted by me in order to clean this thread and preserve its usefulness.

Again ... please keep this thread on topic with the "laser guide" theme. It is too valuable a resource to do otherwise.

Thank you.

bernhard

There is a type of perfection that transcends the quest for lumens. Buying a $250 1-cell light for "lum factor" is like buying a $250 single malt Scotch for the alcohol content. - paulr
It's always darkest just before it goes pitch black.
My shoes are too tight. But it doesn't matter, because I have forgotten how to dance.

Re: The Ultimate Laser Buyer's Guide: Handhelds & Pointers

Just a small correction/update:

Laserglow's Hercules now uses a 2.5W diode and improved crystal set. They are now regularly available in sustained output powers up to >400mW, and occasionally are available as high as >500mW. The divergence has also been improved to now fall between 0.8-1.2mRad.

Thanks for the great comparison list, this will answer a lot of people's basic questions about the wide selection of lasers available out there. Good work!